What you need to know
- Spotify Premium plans will increase in price by $1, though subscribers will get a one-month grace period before having to pay it.
- The new tier pricing will take effect in over 50 countries.
- Gift cards for Spotify bought for lower prices will still apply to new subscriptions.
- The Spotify Premium plan gives users ad-free music and the ability to download offline.
Since 2011, Spotify Premium hasn't changed in price. But that's about to change, as the company warned on Monday. Across all Premium tiers, the cost will rise at least $1 in the U.S. or a comparable amount in other countries.
This means that Spotify Individual will soon cost $10.99. Spotify Duo is now $14.99 ($2 up from the previous pricing), while the Premium Family plan for six premium accounts jumps $1 to $15.99. The most affordable option for students also increases a dollar to $5.99.
In its announcement blog post, Spotify said this fee hike was "so that we can keep innovating," rather than tying it to a specific new feature.
This move from Spotify is not surprising, as we learned back in October 2022 that the company was considering raising prices. Spotify CEO Daniel Ek said at the time that Spotify was already an "amazing consumer-value proposition" and that it had raised prices in other regions already.
Spotify is one of the best music streaming services available worldwide. The question is, will this price bump push customers to leave for other services?
It's unlikely, given that we've seen a trend in price hikes for other music and video streaming services already. Most recently, YouTube raised its Premium subscription from $11.99 to $13.99 per month, while YouTube Music saw a monthly price bump from $9.99 to $10.99.
The Apple Music subscription plan also saw a $1 price bump across all its subscription models, like Apple Music Family and Apple TV Plus.
Spotify's price increase FAQ page explains that this change will take place soon, and that customers will receive an email notifying them of the change, followed by a one-month grace period. The new price is already reflected on Spotify's website, but anyone currently in a trial period will get one month of the lower $9.99 price before having to pay more.
